In industrial automation environments, for example, a target device built by a manufacturer must often be commissioned to suit a broader application, such as, e.g., a controller that must be commissioned for use in an industrial automation system. This commissioning is performed by an integrator, such as an Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) builder. The overarching process of building a machine can include adding, for example, one or more hardware, software, or network components (each of which can be a “target device”) to the machine. The commissioning begins by physically attaching the target device to an OEM builder device. Upon being attached to the OEM builder device, the OEM builder device can be used to perform one or more commissioning actions on the target device, such as commissioning a network, operating system, or application(s). Moreover, the commissioning actions can be registered with an asset registry, which can be part of a larger asset management system. The commissioning environment is typically an isolated local network that does not provide Internet connectivity for the target device, but where the target device instead is bound to a proprietary or other non-IP network that is not connected to an enterprise network or to the cloud. The technician who is building the machine (the “OEM Builder”) generally has Internet access, either through a different device, such as a smart phone; or through the OEM builder device, when connected to a different network. Thus, in order to communicate between OEM builder device and the asset registry, as is needed for the commissioning process, the OEM builder may have to manually copy message content back and forth between the target device, the OEM builder (commissioning process) and the asset registry, thereby decreasing efficiency, and increasing the probability of an error or even providing the ability for an OEM builder to circumvent necessary security measures pertaining to the target device.
While the methods and systems described herein are susceptible to various modifications and alternative forms, specific embodiments thereof are provided as examples in the drawings and detailed description. It should be understood that the drawings and detailed description are not intended to limit such embodiments to the particular form(s) disclosed. Instead, the intention is to cover all modifications, equivalents and alternatives falling within the spirit and scope of the appended claims.